Slide 1It is necessary that the Son of man be lifted up… (Background music) May I never boast of anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ: he is our salvation, our life and resurrection; through him we have been saved. (cf. Gal 6, 14)

Slide 2We fix our eyes on Jesus Crucified to contemplate the great love with which the Father has loved the world….. to gain a renewed awareness that the Lord, crucified and glorious, is the only hope of man. Slide 3HymnListen and you will live (Galliano-Semprini)The Lord has something to say The Lord wants to speak to you. In silence dispose your heart If you want to listen to your God. Listen and you will liveThe Lord wants to meet you He wants to dwell in your heart You cannot refuse his invitation If you want to remain in him. Listen and you will live

Slide 4From the Gospel of John “No one has gone up to heaven except the one who has come down from heaven, the Son of Man. And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life." For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life.” (Jn 3:13-16) (Music) Slide 5The Holy Father, Pope John Paul II expresses his “certainty that the Church has to offer the most precious of all gifts, a gift which no one else can give: faith in Jesus Christ, the source of the hope that does not disappoint… This confession of faith causes our hearts and lips to raise a joyful confession of hope.“Risen and living Lord, you are the new hope of the Church and of humanity. You are the one true hope for the human family and for history. Already in this life, and in the life to come you are “among us the hope of glory”. (EE 18)

Slide 6Let us express our readiness to proclaim Christ, the hope of glory, with a song or spontaneous prayer.

Slide 7And when I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw everyone to myself. (Jn 12:32)(music) Slide 8From the Letter of Paul to the Romans “Hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out into our hearts through the holy Spirit that has been given to us. For Christ, while we were still helpless, yet died at the appointed time for the ungodly.” Slide 9“Indeed, only with difficulty does one die for a just person, though perhaps for a good person one might even find courage to die. But God proves his love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us.” (Rm 5:5-8) (music)

Hope does not always show visible results, but it helps us to move ahead. When it is night, it is more beautiful to believe in light. The only thing that can hinder a dream from coming true is the fear of failure. Hope instead, is continuing to believe even when there is no longer hope.

Slide 10The word of the Cross is the power of God.In the word of the cross shines forth in all its radiance the meaning, the strength, and the mission of the virtue we call hope.

Slide 11The poet Charles Peguy wrote: “Hope is the wellspring of life, the seed of every spiritual birth. It is she who makes grace gush forth… Because she is small, she thinks she needs other virtues in order to walk: Instead it is the others who need her.”

Hope is such a powerful and sublime virtue that the poet does not hesitate to attribute it to the heart of God. God loves human beings so much that he hopes in them. He does not want his hope to be taken away from the most miserable sinner.

Slide 12For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, (Jn 3:16)

Slide 13The Pope continues:Mary... a new creation molded by the Holy Spirit, causes the virtue of hope to grow within us. To her, Mother of hope and consolation, we confidently lift up our prayer: to her we entrust the future of the Church and the future of all the women and men of this world.” (EE 125) Slide 14Mary, Mother of hope, accompany us on our journey!Teach us to proclaim the living God; help us to bear witness to Jesus, the one Saviour; make us kindly towards our neighbors, welcoming to the needy, concerned for justice, impassioned builders of a more just world; intercede for us as we carry out our work in history, certain that the Father‘s plan will be fulfilled.